While indulging in all manner of foods is a staple of the season, those festive feasts can bring their own unwanted guests. Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health dropped by Canada AM with tips to avoid getting sick.

Most cases of food poisoning are caused by the consumption of food containing bacterial toxins. These bacteria can't be seen, smelled or tasted, but given the right conditions they can multiply to millions in just a few short hours.

The good news, according to Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Arlene King, is that most of their associated illnesses can be avoided if everyone handling foodstuffs follows a few simple guidelines.

"Food safety really is everyone's business. It's not just those professionally responsible for producing food, it's even you when you're preparing food," Dr. King said during her recent visit to CTV's Canada AM studios.

It needn't be complicated though, as Dr. King suggested four simple buzz words holiday cooks need to keep in mind: clean, separate, cook, chill.

That means cleaning your hands before cooking, and keeping them clean as you go along, and doing the same for your utensils and work surfaces too.

Also, raw meats and other potentially hazardous foods should be stored and prepared separately from foods that are ready to eat, reducing the risk of bacterial cross-contamination.

Foods should be cooked to the appropriate temperatures -- checked with accurate thermometers. And finally, cooked foods need to be cooled quickly and then stored at the appropriate temperature.

Temperatures are important When it comes to serving food too, King emphasised, explaining that, "hot needs to be kept hot and cold cold."

The same guidelines apply for food you're taking to a party, for example, Kinf says, suggestiong you keep the hot foods hot (60° C/140° F or warmer), by covering them with foil and transporting in a thermal container and keep the cold foods cold (4° C/40° F or colder) by carrying them in a separate cooler with some ice or frozen gel packs.

When those shrimp rings and sausage rolls are ready for serving, they should be kept out no longer than 2 hours. After that, King says, "you need to get rid of them."

To avoid wasting food, King says hosts should keep the number of guests in mind.

"If you're not having a large crowd. it's important to keep the amounts that you're putting out fairly small so that they don't get an opprtunity to lay out for too long."

The same rule applies to leftovers. So if you want to save the surplus from the dinner buffet, make sure to get them in the fridge quickly.

Other food preparation tips include:

  • always thaw food in the fridge, as the uneven warming at room temperature can encourage bacterial growth
  • make sure your sponges, dish towels and cloths are washed often, as they can be breeding grounds for bacteria
  • always use a probe thermometer to test the interior temperature of cooked meat or poultry at its thickest point
  • never serve foods in the same dishes they were prepared in, or with the same utensils that handled them when raw
  • a teaspoon of bleach dissolved in three cups of water, stored in a clearly-labelled, refillable spray bottle makes a perfect disinfectant for counters, tables, taps, sinks and appliances (including the fridge door handles). A clean kitchen is always important, but especially so after handling raw meat, fish or dairy products.

There's one more seasonal ritual Dr. King says needs to be forgotten.

While the fruit cake has more than its share of detractors, a beloved ritual of holiday baking involves licking the spoon clean of whatever dough, batter or frosting it was stirring.

But Dr. King warns bakers -- and more importantly their eager young apprentices -- to resist the temptation.

"Batter contains raw eggs and raw eggs can contain salmonella," King warns. "and don't share that raw batter with your children in particular because they're quite vulnerable to salmonella."

All surfaces and utensils need to be washed well, obviously, but she suggests paying particuar attention to the wooden spoon you may have used to stir that delicious cake batter.

King says it should be disinfected with the same mild bleach solution used to disinfect your countertops and cutting boards.

So what if you've covered all the bases and still leave the party feeling ill?

Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever and cramps are all relatively mild symptoms associated with food poisoning that can appear as quickly as 30 minutes or as long as two weeks after eating contaminated food, and may disappear just as quickly.

If symptoms are more severe -- such as paralysis, double vision or trouble swallowing and breathing, for example -- or the sufferer is pregnant, very young or very old, it's recommended a doctor be consulted right away.